NEW DELHI, Oct 20: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the previous governments of neglecting eastern Uttar Pradesh and said Varanasi was now poised to emerge as a health care hub for the region.
It was Mr Modi’s first visit to his Parliamentary constituency since his customary thanks-giving trip to Varanasi on June 18 on his re-election to the Lo Sabha. Mr Modi inaugurated projects worth over Rs 6,700 crores and the RJ Shankara Eye Hospital in the city.
“For a long time, Kashi’s identity has been that of a centre of religion and spirituality but now, it is also set to emerge as a big centre of healthcare with various top-of-the-line health treatment facilities now available in Varanasi,” Mr Modi said.
“In the last 10 years, 25 crore people have emerged from poverty and that is why, our government is paying special attention to ensure people remain healthy,” he said after inaugurating the eye hospital.
The RJ Sankara Eye Hospital is the 14th hospital to be run by the Kanchi Math in the country. Mr Modi met the Shankaracharya of Kanchi Shri Vijayendra Saraswati Swamigal before the inauguration, who coined a new acronym with regard to the NDA government – “Narendra Damodardas ka Anushasan” (NDA). The Shankaracharya said it was due to the “blessings of God to have good leaders” and added that the NDA government was not just focussed on infrastructure development but also cultural rejuvenation citing the work done in Kedarnath in Uttarakhand and Somnath in Gujarat.
The RJ Sankara Eye Hospital will benefit people of 20 districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, as well as those living in the border areas of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, people associated with the Kanchi Math said.
(Manas Dasgupta)